Resilient side bearings

ABSTRACT

A resilient bearer on a railway vehicle bogie has a resilient element in the form of a resiliently compressible hollow block of elastomeric material e.g., rubber. The block is a thick walled rubber tube and is mounted between plates. The ends of the plates are turned inwardly to give the bearer the desired longitudinal resilience. Also, a radially disposed sleeve attached to one of the plates and a spigot attached to the other of the plates the sleeve and spigot being movable telescopically, the spigot within the sleeve, and being separated by a resilient bush. This gives increased control of the behavior of the bearer against shear in the longitudinal (axial) direction of the radially compressed tube and against rolling shear of that tube.

United States Patent [1 1 James [111 3,865,443 [451 Feb. 11, 1975 1 RESILIENT SIDE BEARINGS [75] Inventor: Raymond Frederick James,

Bradford-on-Avon, England [22] Filed: Sept. 4, 1973 [21] Appl. No.: 394,272

Related U.S. Application Data [63] Continuation-impart of Ser. No. 198,237, Nov. 12,

1972, abandoned.

[30] Foreign Application Priority Data Nov. 13, 1970 Great Britain ..54124/70 Nov. 12, 1971 Canada ..127475 [52] U.S. Cl..... 308/138, 105/197 DP, 105/199 CB, 267/9 A, 267/63 R [51] Int. Cl. B6lf 5/14, F160 17/04, Fl6f 13/02 [58] Field of Search 105/199 R, 199 CB, 197 DP, 105/199 CB, 199 R; 308/138; 267/9 A, 63 R [56] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 530,999 12/1894 Mather 105/199 R 575,723 1/1897 Mather 105/199 R 850,387 4/1907 Mather 105/199 R 2,327,954 8/1943 Barrows et al 308/138 2,350,301 5/1944 Cottrell 308/138 2,547,852 4/1951 Bryan 308/138 2,698,208 12/1954 Dilg 308/138 3,719,154 3/1973 Reynolds 105/199 CB FOREIGN PATENTS OR APPLICATIONS 499,414 l/l939 Great Britain 267/63 R 535,095 3/1941 Great Britain 1,166,652 4/1967 Great Britain 105/197 A Primary Examiner-M. Henson Wood, Jr. Assistant Examiner-I-Ioward Beltran Attorney, Agent, or Firm-Francis T. Carr [57] ABSTRACT A resilient bearer on a railway vehicle bogie has a resilient element in the form of a resiliently compressible hollow block of elastomeric material e.g., rubber. The block is a thick walled rubber tube and is mounted between plates. The ends of the plates are turned inwardly to give the bearer the desired longitudinal resilience. Also, a radially disposed sleeve attached to one'of the plates and a spigot attached to the other of the plates the sleeve and spigot being movable telescopically, the spigot within the sleeve, and being separated by a resilient bush. This gives increased control of the behavior of the bearer against shear in the longitudinal (axial) direction of the radially compressed tube and against rolling shear of that tube.

8 Claims, 14 Drawing Figures PATENTED F551 1 75 SHEET 1 [1F 6 PAIENTEU FEB! 1 I975 SHEET 2 OF 6 PAT-ENTEU EB nsvs SHEET 3 OF 6 PAIENTEDFEBI 1 1975 saw u or s fi i- PATENTEQ FEB] 1:975

SHEET 5 or 6 PATENTEB FEB 1- 1 I975 SHEET 6 or 6 RESILIENT SIDE BEARINGS This application is a continuation-in-part of my copending application Ser. No. 198,237, filed Nov. 12, 1971, now abandoned.

This invention relates to resilient bearers in railway vehicles especially bearers for use with a railway vehicle bogie.

Railway vehicle bogies are known in which the vehicle body is pivotally mounted on a bogie bolster (which is supported by side frames of the bogie) and is further supported to each side of the pivotal mounting by resilient bearers mounted between the vehicle body and the bogie bolster. In the past the resilient bearers have had a high vertical load/deflection rate which has meant that the deflections achieved have not been great and consequently accurate. machining of metal parts has been necessary when the bogie was being assembled.

It has also been found that due to the wear which takes place on the rubbing face provided between the resilient means and the vehicle body, the load exerted by the resilient means can be reduced by an unacceptable amount.

It is an object of this invention to provide a resilient bearer which can have relatively low vertical load/deflection rate. It is a further object to provide a bearer which can if desired be used with known types of bogie in replacement for some presently used forms of resilient means.

The invention consists in providing a hollow tube of elastomeric material as a resilient component in a railway vehicle resilient bearer disposed in such a way that bearing pressure acts to compress the tube radially. Such a resilient bearer may have two opposed plates, a resiliently compressible hollow tube of elastomeric material (e.g., rubber) between the plates, one of the said plates being secured against each of opposite faces of the tube.

The tube is preferably elongate (e.g., with a length substantially greater than its width or height in the uncompressed state) and may be in the form of a thick walled tube of rubber. It preferably has flat upper and lower surfaces which are to be horizontal in the working position and to respective ones of which the two plates are secured e.g. by a bar within the tube and screws or bolts passing through the wall of the tube from the plate to the bar so that the wall is clamped between the plate and the bar.

At each end of the tube the two ends of the plates may be turned towards each other to provide end abutments for parts of the end ofthe tube to restrict longitudinal movement of the elastomeric material when the unit is under vertical or under both vertical and longitudinal (shear) load and to increase the longitudinal load/deflection rate.

The plate which is to be uppermost will be provided with a friction pad to support the vehicle body with which the resilient bearer is used.

This arrangement when placed in position in a railway vehicle as a bearer between the bogie and the body absorbs shock and vibration in the vertical direction between the bogie and the body and absorbs also low amplitude or high frequency shocks in its own longitudinal direction. But when the bogie is pivoted as when the vehicle negotiates a curve in the railway track the frictional engagement between the bearer and the body permit a sliding motion without distortion of the tube. We find it desirable to control the extent to which the tube can be distorted both when being rolled about its own central axis and in longitudinal shear by restraining the possibility of the plates moving excessively relative to each other in directions parallel to each other, providing means other than the tube itself for this purpose. More specifically, we provide attached to one of the two plates a hollow sleeve and attached to the other plates a spigot that can enter within the sleeve, and a resilient bush acting between the spigot and the sleeve to be placed under compression in at least one direction upon movement of the plates relative to each other and parallel to each other, the said spigot and sleeve being freely moveable relative to each other in the direction of their own axis i.e., in the direction perpendicular to the direction of the relative parallel movement of the plates. Thus this arrangement does not affect the behaviour of the bearer in radial compression of its tube but does control rolling or longitudinal or shear of the tube by the interposition of a resilient bush between vertically slidable sleeve and spigot, respectably fast with the plates.

The invention extends to bogie bolsters, bogies and railway vehicles having a resilient bearer as described above.

Two embodiments of this invention will now be described by way of example only with reference to the accompanying drawings wherein:

FIG. 1 is a partial side view of a bogie including a bogie side frame, a resilient bearer or spring unit and part of a vehicle frame;

FIG. 2 is a part plan view of part of the bogie shown in FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a section on the line A-A shown in FIG.

FIG. 4 is an end view of the rubber tube used in the bearer shown in FIG. 1 prior to assembly of the unit;

FIG. 5 is a side view of the bearer shown in FIG. 1;

FIG. 6 is an end view of the bearer shown in FIG. 5 with part of one plate omitted for clarity;

FIG. 7 is a view similar to FIG. 5 with the bearer under compression; and

FIG. 8 is an end view of the bearer in the state shown in FIG. 7.

FIG. 9 is a side view of a second embodiment of a bearer in relaxed condition and FIG. 10 is an end view, FIG. 11 is a side view of the bearer in compressed condition and FIG. 12 is the end view;

FIG. 13 is a sectional view on the line A-A of FIG. 11, and

FIG. 14 is a sectional view on the line BB of FIG. 10.

Referring to FIGS. 1 to 3 of the drawings, there is shown a bogie comprising side frames 10 provided with bearings (not shown in detail) for axles 12 carrying the bogie wheels 14.

Forming a bridge between and supported by the side frames 10 misway along their lengths, is a bogie bolster 15 having a platform 16. The bogie bolster 15 is supported by the side frames 10 through spring means shown diagrammatically at 17. At the centre of the bolster platform is a pivot 18 comprising a central boss 20 and concentric therewith an annular bearing surface 22. As seen in FIG. 3, vehicle frame 24 is supported by the bolster platform 16 through the pivot 18 for pivotal movement with respect thereto, which mates with an annular bearing surface 26 provided on the underside of the vehicle frame 24.

Two resilient side bearers 30 described subsequently in greater detail are secured to the bolster platform 16 symmetrically with regard to the pivot 18 by means of lower loading plates 32 of the units welded to the upper surface of the bolster platform 16.

On the underside of the vehicle frame 24 there are provided blocks 40 having downwardly facing horizontal surfaces 42 which make sliding contact with friction pads 38 provided on upper loading plates 34 of the side bearers 30.

Referring now to FIGS. 4 to 8, the resilient side bearers 30 are formed by the lower plates 32, the upper plates 34 and secured between them a hollow thick walled tube 36 of resilient rubber which in the unstressed state is approximately two-and-a-half times as long as it is high and wide. An end view of rubber tube 36 before it is secured to the plates 32, 34 is shown in FIG. 4 from which it can be seen that the tube has curved side walls 37 and straight upper and lower walls 48 surrounding a cavity of approximately oval crosssection. The cavity extends from end to end of the tube 36. The upper and lower walls 48 have flat outer faces which are horizontal in use and against which the plates 32, 34 are secured by means of bars 44 held within the tube 36 which are secured to the plates 32,34 by screws 46 passing through holes 47 in the upper and lower walls 48 of the rubber and making screw-thread engagement with holes tapped in the lates 44. Correct tightening of each screw 46 is achieved when its plate 44 is drawn against a shoulder 50 on the screw.

A friction pad 38 composed for example of Ferobestos is stuck on to the upper surface of each upper plate 34 and is prevented from lateral movement by a surround 52 (see also the plan view in FIG. 2).

As seen in FIGS. and 7, at each end of the tube 36 the ends of the plates 32,34 are shaped as shown at 54 so that their ends approach one another, but without any sharp angle being presented to the rubber, in order to restrict longitudinal expansion of the rubber and to provide the required longitudinal load/deflection rate for the unit. The downturned end 54 of the upper plate 34 is shown in FIG. 6 but the upturned end of lower plate 32 has been omitted from this figure to enable the shape of the rubber section 36 and details of the lower securing device 44,46 to be seen.

The length of the tube 36 and the shaping of the ends of the plate 32,34 influence the longitudinal load/deflection rate. The thickness of the rubber and the outside cross section dimensions of the section are factors which influence the vertical rate. Merely as an example, the tube 36 and plates 32, 34 may be designed to give a vertical rate of 1% tons per inch and a longitudinal (shear) rate of 13 tons per inch.

The condition of the bearers 30 under vertical loading is shown in FIGS. 7 and 8 and the effect of the ends 54 of the plates in restricting longitudinal movement of the rubber is shown.

The bearers above described give a relatively low vertical load/deflection ratio compared with some known forms of bearers in bogies thus allowing greater tolerance on the mating parts. The units give a relatively large vertical deflection for a relatively low free height which helps overcome the difficulties of tolerance just mentioned and also difficulties in change of loading produced by wear on the friction pads which, if the vertical rate were higher might result in an unacceptable lowering of the frictional force applied by or to the frictional pad 38. At the same time a compact and simply manufactured assembly is provided.

A variety of longitudinal rates can be obtained by varying the form of the ends of the top and bottom plates. However, to gain control over the behaviour of the bearer when under conditions which would place the tube under longitudinal or rolling shear we prefer to use the arrangement shown in the second embodiment. Here, a tube has an overall conformation generally as in the first embodiment except that as best seen in FIGS. 13 and 14, a circular aperture 61 is pierced radially through it, halfway along its axial length.

The upper plate here designated 62 has a sleeve 63 welded to it so as to project perpendicularly to it and across about half the radial height of the tube 60 when it is in the relaxed condition as shown in FIG. 10. The sleeve 63 is cylindrical and of a radius greater than that of a solid spigot 64 of which an enlarged collar portion 65 bears flat against the inner surface of the lower plate 66 of the bearer assembly, the securing of the spigot further being helped by the provision of a stud portion 67 which is welded within an aperture in the plate 66.

A friction plate 68 is bonded fast to the upper surface of the upper plate 62 and further restrained by a raised border around the plate, to provide a frictional interaction with the portion of the railway vehicle on which it is designed to bear.

Upper and lower portions of the tube 60 are clamped to the upper and lower plates respectively by being clamped between those plates and holding bars 69 and 70 on the upper side and 71,72 on the lower side, the bars all being engaged by respective screws 73 of which the heads engage the plates 62,66 respectively.

The spigot 64 is, like the sleeve 63, cylindrical and so there is an annular gap between them and this is radially occupied by a bushing made up of a sleeve 74 surrounded by an elastomeric bush 75.

The sleeve 74 is a close but freely sliding fit about the spigot 64. The elastomeric bush 75 is forced fitted within the sleeve 63 so that it is retained against movement along the axis of the sleeve 63. The alternative arrangement could equally well be used i.e., with the bushing axially fixed relative to the spigot and slidable relative to the sleeve 63.

To assist entry of the spigot 64 into the inner sleeve 74 the spigot has a bevelled-off nose portion 76.

Comparison of FIG. 10 with FIG. 12 or of FIG. 9 with FIG. 11 will show the extent to which the sleeve 63 and spigot 64 may be displaced relative to each other along their common axis upon radial compression of the tube 60. The rate of compression with load achieved in that direction is solely dependent on the nature and construction of the rubber tube 60; however longitudinal shear of the tube 60 i.e., shear with the plate 60,62 moving one to right and one to the left in FIG. 9 and parallel to each other is resisted not only by the material of the tube 6*1) itself but by radial compression of the elastomeric bush 75 between the spigot 64 and sleeve 63. Control of that characteristic is obtained partially by the structure and characteristics of the tube 60 but principally by the dimensioning of the bushing made up of sleeve 74 and bush 75 and the characteristics of the elastomeric material used in the bush 75. In

one choice of the materials and dimensions, for example, there may be achieved a vertical rate of l% tons to the inch.

The presence of the spigot and sleeve and their aasociated bushing also helps prevent the imposition of rolling shear on the tube but this in normal conditions of use is not of such great importance as longitudinal shear.

I claim:

1. A railway vehicle resilient bearer for positioning between a vehicle body and a bogie to frictionally engage one of them, the bearer having two opposed plates, and a resiliently compressible thick-walled, open-ended hollow tube of elastomeric material between the plates with its axis parallel to the plates, re spective ones of the two said plates being secured against repsective ones of opposite faces of the tube to extend generally parallel to each other, whereby upon the plates moving towards each other the tube is compressed in its radial direction against the resilience of the elastomeric material of the tube, and restraint upon the plates moving parallel to each other is provided by the elastomeric material of the tube.

2. A resilient bearer according to claim 1 wherein at least one plate has its ends turned inwardly over the ends of the tube.

3. A resilient bearer according to claim 1 wherein each plate is clamped against the face of the tube by a member within the tube.

4. A resilient bearer according to claim 1 wherein one of the plates has a friction pad secured to its exposed outer face.

5. A resilient bearer according to claim 1 which has extending between the two plates and diametrically of the tube, means additional to the tube for restraining the plates against relative displacement parallel to each other.

6. A resilient bearer according to claim 5 wherein the said means includes a sleeve secured to one of the plates, a spigot secured to the other of the plates, the spigot fitting freely within the sleeve, 21 bushing between the spigot and the sleeve and compressed by relative displacement of the sleeve and the spigot in a direction axially of the tube, the spigot and sleeve being freely movable relative to each other in a direction radial of the tube.

7. A resilient bearer according to claim 6 wherein the bushing includes an annular elastomeric element and an annular rigid element fast with the elastomeric element, the elastomeric element being immovable relative to one of the spigot and the sleeve and the rigid element being slidable relative to the other of the spigot and the sleeve.

8. A resilient bearer according to claim 6 wherein said spigot and sleeve are half way along the length of the said plates taken in the axial direction of the tube and the said clamping members within the tube are situated on each longitudinal side of the spigot and sleeve arrangement. 

1. A railway vehicle resilient bearer for positioning between a vehicle body and a bogie to frictionally engage one of them, the bearer having two opposed plates, and a resiliently compressible thick-walled, open-ended hollow tube of elastomeric material between the plates with its axis parallel to the plates, respective ones of the two said plates being secured against repsective ones of opposite faces of the tube to extend generally parallel to each other, wheReby upon the plates moving towards each other the tube is compressed in its radial direction against the resilience of the elastomeric material of the tube, and restraint upon the plates moving parallel to each other is provided by the elastomeric material of the tube.
 2. A resilient bearer according to claim 1 wherein at least one plate has its ends turned inwardly over the ends of the tube.
 3. A resilient bearer according to claim 1 wherein each plate is clamped against the face of the tube by a member within the tube.
 4. A resilient bearer according to claim 1 wherein one of the plates has a friction pad secured to its exposed outer face.
 5. A resilient bearer according to claim 1 which has extending between the two plates and diametrically of the tube, means additional to the tube for restraining the plates against relative displacement parallel to each other.
 6. A resilient bearer according to claim 5 wherein the said means includes a sleeve secured to one of the plates, a spigot secured to the other of the plates, the spigot fitting freely within the sleeve, a bushing between the spigot and the sleeve and compressed by relative displacement of the sleeve and the spigot in a direction axially of the tube, the spigot and sleeve being freely movable relative to each other in a direction radial of the tube.
 7. A resilient bearer according to claim 6 wherein the bushing includes an annular elastomeric element and an annular rigid element fast with the elastomeric element, the elastomeric element being immovable relative to one of the spigot and the sleeve and the rigid element being slidable relative to the other of the spigot and the sleeve.
 8. A resilient bearer according to claim 6 wherein said spigot and sleeve are half way along the length of the said plates taken in the axial direction of the tube and the said clamping members within the tube are situated on each longitudinal side of the spigot and sleeve arrangement. 